More Missing Pieces
by Becks7
Summary: Now it’s Wheeler’s turn to fill in the missing pieces and explain himself for his unthinkable action in “Talkin’ Trash.” HOW COULD HE KISS HER! SHE’S NOT LINKA! What led him to that moment?
1. Chapter 1

Summary: Now it's Wheeler's turn to fill in the missing pieces and explain himself for his unthinkable action in "Talkin' Trash." HOW COULD HE KISS HER?! SHE'S NOT LINKA!

A/N: I didn't plan on writing this one, but after I finished reading Missing Pieces again, I thought that the ending also left an opening to explain why Wheeler seemed to forget all about Linka and kiss that trashy Trish! And since I'm not a big fan of that episode (as I know alot of people aren't), I wanted to give a reason for his actions that would be a suitable explanation for Wheeler and Linka fans. Once again, I'm back to writing from Wheeler's point of view.

* * *

On again, or off again? I guess it's off. After thinking that Linka was leaving us and staying in Russia, I was ready to leave the Planeteers. She kept me going. I'd wake up in the morning…sometimes afternoon…and my day didn't start until I saw her. For some people, the smell of coffee wakes up their senses…for me…it was Linka. The sight of her, the smell of her shampoo or lotion, or whatever that wonderful subtle scent is…it got all my senses stimulated. How was I ever going to get through the day without her? Thankfully, now that she's solved the mystery of her grandmother's illness, she's come back to the Planeteers…to me. But not really. She didn't come back for me, as much as I'd like to think that. She kissed me goodbye, and even though she rejoined the Planeteers, that kiss still felt like it was goodbye.

We had a heart to heart on the plane ride back from Russia. I thought we were finally on the right track. I told her I know how she feels about me, even if she can't say it to me. I thought that was enough. If she can't say it now, we can still be together and eventually, she'll feel comfortable enough to say it out loud. But somehow, I went from feeling positive at the beginning of our conversation to completely dejected and negative. I didn't think it was possible, but we may be further apart now than we ever have been before. I try not to push her, but it's hard when I know how she feels, and all I wanna do is be with her. Why is she wasting so much time? It makes me question myself. Maybe I'm imagining things. No. I heard her. After I quietly confessed that I loved her after she'd turned her back and walked away. She didn't know I stayed behind, but when she thought I got back on the Geo Cruiser with Ma-Ti, she said "I love you too Wheeler." Why can't she say it to my face?

Maybe I misunderstood. Maybe it's more like "I love you like a brother." If she did feel the same way for me that I feel for her, she would have had more of a reaction to my…I guess you could call it an ultimatum. I told her I'd wait, but eventually, I had to move on. I even went as far as to suggest that maybe she's not "the one," maybe I'm meant to be with someone else. Did she put up a fight? Did she tell me I was wrong and that we _WERE_ meant to be together? No. I spent the rest of the flight back to Hope Island pretending to be asleep…and trying to ignore the soft sobs and sniffles coming from across the aisle. It was hard because all I wanted to do was go to her, hold her in my arms and tell her I didn't mean it. Tell her that she was the only one I ever wanted to be with; that I _**KNEW**_ she was the one I was meant to spend the rest of my life with, and that I'd wait for her, for however long it took.

Once we got back to the island, I was planning on asking her to go for a walk with me after dinner. But while Kwame was serving our meal, I asked him where Linka was and he told me that she said she was not hungry, tired, and just going straight to bed. I tried not to make it too obvious, but I wanted to talk to her as soon as I could. I didn't want her going to bed upset and crying. When I got to her room, I knocked softly on the door. When I got no answer, I slowly opened it thinking maybe she just didn't hear me because she was in the shower, or maybe she was ignoring the knock, hoping whoever it was would go away.

All the lights are out, but the moonlight streaming through her window illuminates her sleeping form in the bed. I walk up to the side of her bed and kneel down next to her. Her breathing is slow and shallow. She's definitely asleep. I can't say that I blame her, it's been a long day. I can see that she's been crying from the dried tear tracks on her cheeks. I want to wake her up so I can tell her the truth. I want her to have a peaceful nights sleep and not wake up in the morning feeling hurt. And I want to wake her up for my own selfish reasons. I know I won't be able to sleep knowing that I'm the reason for her tears. But at the same time, I don't want to disturb her or cause her anymore pain. I've done enough of that today.

"I'm sorry Babe," I whisper as I softly kiss her forehead. "I didn't mean to hurt you. I'm an idiot, but you already knew that. I just can't think straight when it comes to you and I say and do stupid stuff to try and make you jealous. I could never move on because there's no one else that can ever take your place. No one could ever come close. I'll fix this mess tomorrow. We'll talk then. Goodnight beautiful," I say as I pull the covers up over her shoulders and wipe away the remaining moisture on her cheek with my thumb.

* * *

This day has been super busy. I asked Linka if I could talk to her after lunch, and she said yes, but unfortunately, we got called off on a mission. Some bozos were testing nuclear weapons underground, it caused an earthquake, and we had to go help with the relief efforts. We no sooner got home and Gaia had us going out on another mission. Once again, at the end of that mission, we were sent on another. At this point things seemed pretty weird. It turned out that somehow, Dr. Blight had switched bodies with Gaia. Once we figured it out and got Gaia back into her usual self, we had been up for almost 24 hours straight. Linka seemed fine and no longer upset, and while I still wanted to talk to her, I never got the chance.

* * *

On our next mission, we ended up saving a wolf cub whose pack had been shot and killed by Blight and a group of hunters. We took him back to the island and Gaia wasn't very pleased. We had a tendency to bring home all the "strays." So she sent us back out to release the now healthy animals. This put a hold on any sort of private conversation between Linka and me. Things were ok between us…they were pretty good actually. We were joking with each other, she'd tease me, I'd say something suggestive to her, she'd shoot me down…or in this case, a wallaby slapped me across the face with his tail. We ended up bringing back all the animals that we were supposed to take to their homes **AND** picking up even more animals that were in need of rescue. I wasn't too happy about it at first because my shoes were getting chewed, I was stepping in…stuff, and I kept sneezing. Plus, I knew Gaia would be mad. Of course I ended up getting attached to the little wolf cub, especially after he saved our lives. Linka teased me about my 'animal magnetism.' HA! If only that were true. She didn't seem to have a hard time resisting me at times!

* * *

Gaia had given us some time off. Kwame and Ma-Ti had gone to India to plant trees. That left Linka and I alone with Gi…which means, I never got a chance to talk to Linka. She and Gi were constantly together; swimming, going on shopping sprees, and even when they were on vacation, they were working on researching information that would be helpful to us as Planeteers. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for being good at your job, but vacations are for relaxing. That's why I spent all my time catching up on some movies. Eventually, Gi left to go spend time at some dolphin research facility that her parents had helped to fund. _FINALLY_, I thought I'd have some alone time with Linka, but by then, Kwame and Ma-Ti were back. At least with them, I'd be able to sneak away with Linka and they'd never notice. She surprised me by coming to my room that evening with a movie and a bowl of popcorn.

I was lying on my stomach on my bed, reading a comic book when there was a knock at my door. I figured it was Kwame or Ma-Ti trying to get me to do something productive with my time…geez, do these people not know the meaning of the word "vacation!?" I'm pretty sure it means a break from work, a period of time devoted to rest, travel, or recreation. I plan to devote my time to rest and recreation.

"Go away!"

"Oh. Ok. Sorry. I thought you would like some company."

"Linka?! Wait!" I call to her. I jump up and run to the door. "Come in."

"But you said…"

"I thought you were Kwame or Ma-Ti, trying to get me to work while on vacation."

"And that would be horrible, da?"

"Hell da!"

She laughs and says,

"Mind if I join you?"

"I'd love it if you did. What'cha got there Babe?"

"Well, I know you wanted to catch up on all of the recent movies that you have not been able to see, and there was one movie in particular that I really wanted to see…I thought that maybe we could watch it together."

"Absolutely. Come have a seat." I walk over to my bed and clear off the clothes and comic books that have accumulated on it. "Sorry, for the mess. I wasn't expecting company. And I don't really have a place to sit other than the bed…unless you wanna take this party out to the commons area. At least we'd have a couch to sit on while we watched the movie."

"Nyet, this is fine," she says as she takes a seat on my bed, props up some pillows, and leans back against the headboard.

"So what movie did you bring? The Fugitive? A Few Good Men? Cliffhanger? I already watched Lethal Weapon 3 and Jurassic Park, but I'd watch them again…"

"The Bodyguard."

"What?"

"The Bodyguard. It's about…"

"It's a chick flick!"

"I do not think so. Not completely. There looks like there is some action…"

"Yeah, mixed in with mushy romance!" I complain.

"Bozhe moy! Maybe you should watch it. You might learn something! But that is fine. If you do not want to watch it with me, I will watch it by myself." She starts to get up, but I put my hands on her shoulders to stop her.

"No, stay. I was only kidding…sort of. It's not exactly what I would have chosen, but I've been waiting all week to get a chance to spend some time with you, so if you wanna watch it, I'll watch it with you." I take the movie from her and put it in the VCR.

When I return to the bed and sit beside her, she puts the bowl of popcorn in my lap and moves closer. This is nice. She leans her head on my shoulder. I put my arm around her and lean my head against hers. Maybe this was her way of attempting to get closer? Of letting me know she's trying…that she's almost ready. I know I shouldn't get my hopes up. Linka and I have been here before. It's familiar territory actually. It's the intersection of "Finally! Thank God!" and "Nyet Wheeler, we cannot do this." When I was younger, I used to love spinning around in circles until I was so dizzy I couldn't stand or walk straight. Now, I'm sick of going in circles. Now, going in circles makes me sick.

A half-hour into the movie, I notice that neither one of us have been eating the popcorn. That's weird. Usually I can have a whole bowl finished by myself in the first 10 minutes of a movie. I reach into the bowl, pull out a single piece, and hold it in front of her mouth for her. She opens her mouth and I put the popped kernel into it. She then returns the favor, and feeds me. It's definitely the best bowl of popcorn I've ever had. We continue sharing the popcorn like this until Linka shakes her head, indicating that she doesn't want anymore. I take that piece, toss it in the air, and catch it in my mouth. Linka looks up at me and smiles.

"Impressed?" I ask.

"Nyet."

"Why not?! I'd like to see you do that on the first try!"

"Perhaps I would be more impressed if your target was not so big!"

"What exactly are you implying Miss Petrova?"

"That you have a big mouth Mr. Wheeler!"

"Shut up," I say light heartedly.

"Make me," was her standard, schoolyard, challenge.

"Be careful, Babe. What would you do it I took you up on that offer?" I ask as I lean down and stop just short of kissing her. It's her move.

"This," she replied, closing the short distance between us.

It was short, but sweet. I'll take it though. Anything she's willing to give, I'll take. We sat in silence for the rest of the movie. I can't stand the theme song from this movie. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if it hadn't been so played out on the radio. It seems like they play it twice an hour. I don't even like listening to the radio anymore. Considering the circumstances though, I should appreciate the words and the implications. Then it hit me. Did Linka choose this movie for a reason? She could have watched this on her own, or with Gi. This would have been a perfect movie for the two of them to gush over. But she wanted to watch it with me. The Bodyguard is definitely a "date" movie. Was this Linka's version of a date? As the credits rolled and the theme song played, I built up the courage to let her know that I figured it out.

"Well that wasn't so bad. As a matter of fact, I'm really glad you wanted to watch it with me. I uh…understand what you're trying to say. I mean, the song pretty much sums it up, right? I told you that I'd always love you, and now you bring this movie for us to watch, so if this is your way of expressing it, then I can live with that."

When she didn't confirm or deny my theory, I leaned forward to look at her face because I knew her eyes would tell me everything…and they would have…if they'd been open. I sigh loudly in frustration and say,

"Linka, wake up."

"Hmm?"

"Your stupid movie's over," I say irritably.

"Oh no, I fell asleep?"

"Yeah. Can't say that I blame you." I say as I remove my arm from around her shoulder and fold my arms across my chest.

"You did not like it?" She asks.

"No. It sucked."

"I thought it was good up until I fell asleep. Did I miss something?"

"No. Nothing important anyways."

"I will have to watch the rest of it tomorrow. How much did I miss?" she asked.

"I don't know. I didn't even know you fell asleep."

"I guess I was just so comfortable…you make a good pillow."

"Good to know."

"I am sorry you did not like it," she apologizes.

"I knew I wouldn't, so it's no big deal."

"Well, it is getting late. I guess I should be going."

"Ok." I stood up, ejected the tape from the VCR, walked to the door, and held it open. She followed me, but stopped in the doorway.

"Unless…"

I interrupted her and gave her the tape.

"I'm making a trip to the video store tomorrow to return the movies I rented. When you're done watching the ending, I can take it back for you."

"Umm, ok. Thank you. Maybe we can go together and pick out a movie we can both agree on?"

"I don't know. I'm kinda all movied out. I've seen all the ones I wanted to see."

"Oh. Ok. Goodnight then Yankee."

"Goodnight."

She lingered for a while, waiting for something. For me? To say something? To do something? I'd already said what I wanted to say, so I shut the door. I don't know why I was so angry with her. It's not her fault she fell asleep. But it is her fault we aren't together. I was just frustrated by our whole situation.

I made a promise to myself that I'd smooth things over with her the next day and take her up on her offer to pick out a movie together. Maybe I could talk her into watching Wayne's World with me! Unfortunately, Gi got herself into some trouble on her trip and we had to go rescue her. That's how our mini vacation ended.

* * *

Our next mission was quite a shock, to say the least. We were attacked by visitors from the future, or some possible version of the future. The weird part was, these visitors were offspring of Blight, Plunder, and Skumm. The fact that those three actually found someone to reproduce with is unbelievable. Maybe they were a result of some science project gone horribly wrong. Whatever it was, they were defeated by Planeteers and Captain Planet from the future. A good future, a clean future…a future where two of the Planeteers looked like they could be descendants of Linka and me. The Fire Planeteer also had red hair, but his bangs were styled like Linka's. The Wind Planeteer, she was a dead ringer for Linka, same hair, same facial features…she even had the same belt. Passed down as a family heirloom? The only difference was no accent. The other future Planeteers looked like they could be related to the current bearers of their rings, but not only did the Fire and Wind Planeteers look like Linka and I, there were enough similarities between the two that they looked like siblings.

When we got back to Hope Island and were repairing some of the damage done to the Geo Cruiser, I couldn't shake the thought. Gaia wouldn't give me any answers, but I just **KNEW** my suspicions were true. Linka caught me daydreaming and must not have liked the fact that I was staring at her.

"Do you have a problem?" she had asked me in an angry tone. She must still be upset about what happened…or didn't happen…during our little movie date.

"It's weird…I mean, the future Planeteers…two of them…they…they kinda looked like us…do you suppose that we…?"

"HA! That is one future that is **NOT** possible, Yankee."

I remember her tone so clearly. She nearly spit fire with her words. The way she said my name…well, her nickname for me…it was with so much contempt. Like, she hated it. Like she was yelling at a bad kid. It hurt. I didn't even care that she did it in front of our friends. I'm used to them seeing her bash me. She does it best when she has an audience.

So that's it. That's the answer I've been waiting for. It's time to move on Wheeler. She's made that perfectly clear. "That is one future that is **NOT** possible, Yankee." Message received. She's not the one. I thought she was, but she doesn't want to be. Well fine. It won't be easy, but I'll get over her. There's plenty of other girls out there that would love to have a guy like me. I was ready to give her the world. Anything she wanted, I would have done. Who would pass that up? Linka would apparently. Oh well. Her loss.

* * *

On our next mission, a boring trip with JASON to some boring Mayan ruins. I tried flirting with one of the locals. She wasn't havin' any of it though. Maybe I'd lost my touch? I wasn't too worried about it though, I was just throwing it out there. If she bit, cool, if not, no biggie. I was just lookin' for a no strings attached fling. If it turned out that she was a great girl and I really liked her, then that's a bonus. But since she wanted nothing to do with me, at least I made Linka mad. I'm done feeling guilty about hurting her feelings. She obviously never thought twice about hurting mine. It's strangely satisfying knowing that she's jealous. She's got no one but herself to blame.

* * *

Then I got the phone call I'd known was inevitable, but was still dreading. My mom called to ask me to come home. My dad was sick. She said I needed to see him. That's not true. I didn't need to see him. _SHE_ needed me to see him. She needed to try and fix something that was damaged beyond repair, and if she couldn't fix it, which she knew she couldn't, at least she could say she tried.

This news had shaken me up more than I was willing to admit. Part of me wanted to go home. I knew that this was important to my Mom. I also didn't want to have any regrets. On the other hand, I had a pretty good feeling that me and my Dad would fight…just like we always have. Did I really want my last memories of him to be of us fighting? Not that it made a difference. That's what my current last memories of him are. These conflicting emotions had me on edge. I was short tempered by nature, but lately, I'd been even worse. The others had noticed it and had been steering clear of me.

When we were helping out at a shelter after helping put out fires started by rioting in L.A., Linka and I accidently bumped into each other. She jokingly accused me of flirting. I knew it was a joke and under normal circumstances, probably would have loved the opportunity to banter playfully with her. The others were close by, but not close enough to hear. We could have had a classic moment, I could have said something suggestive to her, and she would have either went with it, or shot me down…but nicely since the others weren't around so she didn't need to put on an "I hate Wheeler" act. Instead, I blew up and told her to leave me alone, I was just doing my job. She fought back and said she was just joking. Then she called me out on my "miserable mood." By now, the others had seen and heard our fight and came over to see what was going on. It wasn't unusual for her to yell at me, but for me to yell at her was very strange.

Kwame took me aside and got me to open up. I could feel the others looking at me, waiting for answers. It was time to be honest with everyone. They were my friends, if anyone could help get me through this and guide me to make the right decision, they could.

* * *

To be continued...in the conclusion, Wheeler's trip back to New York stirs up feelings that he didn't know he still had...but who are these feelings for? It might not be who you think.


	2. Chapter 2

Forgot the disclaimer in part 1. I always do that! But things haven't changed, I still don't own them, and I'm not making any money from this.

* * *

So I decided to go back. As I suspected, my Dad gave me a hard time. Rather than risk further confrontation, I went out. To make matters worse, someone jacked my ring. The old neighborhood was never the best place to live, but it had seriously gone downhill. There's this thing called "Broken Window Theory," where if people let their neighborhood go, let it get trashed by broken windows, vandalism, and graffiti, people will stop caring and instead of trying to fix it and clean it up, they'll just let it get worse, and in some cases, even contribute to the downfall of the area. If an old run down building has broken windows, a group of bored kids might see it, and think that it would be fun to throw rocks and try to break more windows. They don't mean anything bad by it, they just think that obviously, no one cares about this building, so it's no big deal if they pass the time by making a game out of breaking the windows. If you live in nice, well kept place, you'd think twice before tossing a piece of trash on the ground. When the neighborhood already has the appearance of being uncared for, no one is going to notice or care if you litter or do other things to trash the area. That's definitely what I saw in my old hometown. I chuckle to myself and wonder if Linka would be impressed that I actually knew about the "Broken Window Theory." I know I shouldn't care about what she thinks. I'm trying really hard not to, but I know how she thinks that all I do is goof off and don't take my job seriously. I just wish she was here so I could rub it in and prove that I **DO** look into things during my free time, I **DO** care about my job as a Planeteer, and I **DO** have a brain. But once again, I've taken something unrelated to Linka, and made it about her. I came back here to take a break from her. I just need to focus on my dad and my trashed neighborhood.

Speaking of trash, someone was apparently very fond of the word and spray painted it everywhere. I went to a club and found one of the guys that stole my ring. Turns out it was my old friend Frankie. I can't believe he's gotten in with a bad crowd. Out of all my friends, he had the most potential. Well, besides Trish. She was a great artist. I don't know where that gets people, but in a city like New York, anything is possible. I was no expert on art, but I thought her stuff was good enough to be displayed and sold at fancy galleries.

Then I saw the punk that was the leader of the gang that took my ring. So I jumped him…but it wasn't a him, it was a her…and not just any her, it was Trish!

"Trish?!"

"The name's Trash," she informed me.

So she was the one responsible for destroying our neighborhood. I couldn't believe it. Had I been gone that long that I'd missed so much? Everyone had changed. Had I? I didn't think so. Even Trish's hair color had changed. She went from a beautiful reddish brown to the fakest bleach blonde I'd ever seen. Who was this Madonna wanna be? Surely, this was not the same girl that I had once loved. Well, I think I loved her. She was my girlfriend after all. I tried to remember if I felt the same way about her that I feel…_felt_ about Linka. I couldn't remember. Once I met Linka, I seem to have forgotten everyone else before her. There wasn't really that many to forget. Just grade school and junior high crushes. Trish was my high school sweetheart. Kinda hard not to hook up with her. We grew up together, were best friends, and had each other's backs all through school. She hated all the girls I went on dates with, and I hated all the boys she went out with. Eventually, one thing led to another and it became obvious that the only person I thought would ever be good enough for her was me, and vice versa.

It wasn't like we had the perfect relationship though. After all, we were just kids. I'd get jealous, she'd get jealous, when I wanted to hang out with her, she had plans with her friends, when she wanted to be with me, I already had plans with the guys. We fought all the time, but considering the environments we were both raised in, that seemed normal. It wasn't violent fighting, I would never do that. Just alot of arguing. Sounds familiar doesn't it? Maybe that's just how I'm programmed.

But now Trish, I mean _Trash_, is out of control. I need to stop her. And if anyone can get through to her, it's me. It always has been. I guess there's just some people in your life that you'll always have that connection with. And I definitely still had that connection with her. It's funny. I thought I was coming back to New York for my Dad, but maybe I was brought back here for another reason. Trish is headed down a bad road. Am I the only one that can save her? I'm beginning to think so.

She resents me for leaving. She thinks I abandoned her and our neighborhood. She doesn't get that I left to make the world better. I didn't leave to hurt her. We had broken up shortly before I left. I thought it was the perfect opportunity to start all over. To break the cycle…once again, I see a pattern. She didn't see it that way. I left. I left her. I gave up and didn't fight for her.

Well, not now. I'm here now and I'm not leaving until I save her from this path of destruction. I can't let her destroy her life. I still care for her. She thinks that no one cares about her, but I do. I forgot how much, but seeing her now reminds me. I never want to see anything bad happen to her. I have to convince her that Skumm is bad news. She needs to know someone cares. And I do. I really, genuinely do.

I can't stop thinking about something I told Linka on the flight back from Russia.

"_I've never had a serious relationship. I'm ready for that. I really want you to be that person, but if you don't wanna be that person, I guess there's someone else out there that I'm **supposed** to find. I'm not saying this to hurt you, or put pressure on you to admit your feelings. I just want you to know, I'm ready. You're the only person I want to be with, but maybe things keep keeping us apart because I'm not SUPPOSED to be with you_."

I don't know how I feel about "fate." I guess in order to get by, it's easier to think that everything happens for a reason, good or bad. Maybe fate brought me back to New York, to make things right with my Dad, to save Trish, to realize that maybe she's the one I'm supposed to be with after all. Why else would I be here today? Why else would the universe seem to be keeping Linka and me apart?

All those old feelings are now resurfacing. What if? What if I hadn't left. I know what would happen to the world, but what would've happened with me and Trish? No doubt we would have gotten back together and she wouldn't be in the situation she's in now. So basically, this is all my fault. Well, I'm gonna make it right.

* * *

It took a while, but Trish finally sees the real Skumm. The Skumm who would sacrifice her life to save his tail…literally.

I hate to think what would have happened if I hadn't been there to pull her out of the water. Once we are safely on the dock, we kiss. It's nice. It's familiar. It's **so** right. It's **all** wrong. She's not Linka. Why can't I get her out of my head?! I thought I could. I thought I could love Trish. I **WANTED** to love Trish. I don't want to love Linka. Loving Linka has brought me nothing but pain. Sure there are moments of hope, but then there are those moments where she rips my heart out with such disregard for my feelings. I recall all of her hurtful words. Then I come to the most recent, the ones that convinced me I needed to move on, "That is one future that is **NOT** possible, Yankee." I should hate her for hurting me. I should wise up and realize she means it…the problem is, I can't. I can't hate her, and I can't convince myself that she meant those words. I know she doesn't. There have been too many moments of kindness and tenderness between us.

Linka is not the kind of girl that will hold hands with someone for no reason, or hug them, or kiss them. There are times when she's sought me out. Like the other night when she came to my room to watch a movie. She spent the whole movie in my arms, we fed each other popcorn, we kissed, she fell asleep in my bed, leaning against me. She wouldn't have done that with me if she didn't care. And I don't mean "care" as in friends. She cares about Kwame and Ma-Ti, but not the same way she cares for me…at least I hope not! I could be wrong. For all I know, she's snuggled up on the couch right now with Kwame watching Casablanca. Eww, gross. Of course I know that's not true.

* * *

I gotta get home. Back to Hope Island. Back to Linka. I say goodbye to Trish. I think she'd been hoping that I would stick around, and maybe I would have if I'd felt there was something between us…other than friendship. Of course, after kissing her the night before, I owed her an explanation as to why we weren't ever going to be anything more than just friends. I could tell she was a little jealous, as she always had been when I had a girlfriend that wasn't her.

"You sure about this girl Wheeler?" she asked me.

"I've never been more sure about anything in my life. Now more than ever."

"If she's so great, why didn't she come with you? Wouldn't it have been easier to confront your old man if you had someone to be supportive of you?"

"No. Even if I had the entire Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, National Guard, and Coast Guard standing between my dad and me I'd still be afraid of the things he'd say or do. And I wouldn't want to subject her to his verbal abuse. She's tough, but he has a way of getting under your skin, you know? I can't deal with it half the time, I couldn't do that to her. Plus, I was kinda a jerk to her right before I came here. If I asked her to come with me, she would have. She probably would have offered if I hadn't been such an ass."

"Well, you know I'll never think anyone's good enough for ya. But I do hope you're happy…and if things don't work out…you know where to find me!"

"Right. Thanks."

Trish and I say our goodbyes and my dad even comes down to say goodbye. He actually admitted he was proud of me! I was blown away. A few minutes later, Kwame arrived to take me home. I was kinda disappointed. I was hoping it would be Linka, or that she'd at least accompany anyone that came to get me, but if we had an audience, I wouldn't be able to say all the things I needed to say.

* * *

When we got back to the Island, it was pretty late. Ma-Ti and Suchi met us when the Geo Cruiser landed. After welcoming me back and making sure everything was ok, they headed to bed, but not before letting me know that Linka wanted to stay up, but couldn't keep her eyes open any longer so she went to bed.

I went straight to Linka's cabin, not even bothering to drop my overnight bag off at my place. What I had to say couldn't wait. I sat on the side of her bed, took her hand in mine, and rubbed my thumb across her knuckles. She slowly became aware of my presence and opened her eyes.

"Wheeler? Why are you…? Oh! You are home! What are you doing here?"

"Lookin' at you."

"I am sorry. I tried to stay up but…"

"It's ok."

"How is your father? Did you work things out?" she asks.

"Kind of. I didn't come here to talk about that though, that can wait until tomorrow. This can't."

She sat up and turned on the bedside lamp, squinting as her tired eyes adjusted to the light.

"Good idea. Sit up so you don't fall asleep on me when I'm saying something important!" I joke dryly.

She looks at me questioningly. "What is that supposed to mean? When have I ever…? Oh. That night when we watched the movie…you seemed upset with me. That is why?"

"Yeah, and I realized after you left how stupid it was and was going to explain and apologize the next day, but then we had to go help Gi."

"Tell me now," she says, looking right into my eyes.

"Nah, it wouldn't make sense now. It was about something from the movie."

"Alright. Then what brings you here tonight at this hour? Is everything ok?" she asks.

"No, but I'm going to try to make it ok. I'm sorry for the way I acted in L.A. and for being miserable to be around for a few days before that."

"It is ok. You were under alot of stress. I just wish you would have told me. You should not have had to go through that alone. I…we all could have helped you get through it."

"I know. But there was some tension between us at the time, even before I got that call from my Mom."

"Da, I noticed. But once again, do not know why…do you?"

"Well, you made it pretty clear that there was no way we had a future," I say.

"What? When?"

"When I said that two of those Planeteers looked like us."

"Oh Wheeler, I was only teasing you," she says as she places her hand on my forearm. "You are too sensitive."

"When it comes to you, yeah, I am. I try not to be, but I take everything you say to heart. It's a double edged sword I guess. When you say something good, it makes my day, when you say something bad, it ruins my week."

"I do the same thing you know. When it is just you and me, you treat me so sweetly and I know I am the only one you want to be with. When the others are around, you act differently. Your comments are meant to be complimentary, but come across as your basic pick up line…the same things you say to all the other girls you flirt with…and that brings me to the subject of all the other girls…when I see that, it puts me in a bad mood for weeks. Those are the times when the tension between us is at it's worse."

"That's why I'm here. When you made that comment about a future involving us together not being possible, I decided to finally give up and move on since you'd just made it very clear that I was wasting my time."

"Wheeler! I told you I was only teasing!" She interrupts, "I am sorry that you misunderstood."

"Hold on, let me finish. So I tried. First with some girl in Mexico…she shot me down just as quickly as you did that first day we met. The real test was when I went back to New York. I met up with an old friend…and old girlfriend. Her name is Trish. We grew up together. She was my best friend and the most serious, longest lasting relationship I ever had…which isn't saying much since I was only 15 and 16 when I dated her. We broke up right before I joined the Planeteers. When I got to New York, I found out things had changed…alot. Trish was in a gang and calling herself 'Trash.' The worst part was, Skumm was the creep giving the orders. She was in a bad situation…and I couldn't help but feel guilty. She accused me of not caring and abandoning her, our friends, and our neighborhood. She said I had no right coming back and trying to tell them how to live their lives."

"You cannot blame yourself…anyone who gets involved with Skumm only has themselves to blame."

"You don't really mean that. Skumm is a master of manipulating people. He tricked her just like he tricked Boris and all those others in DC."

"Ok fine, but you put yourself in danger by taking on Skumm by yourself. You should have called us."

"I couldn't. This was my friend, my home, and my battle. It was only a matter of time before Skumm did something to show his true colors and betray Trish. If I hadn't been there, she could have died."

"At least you saved her. I could not save Boris."

"Don't blame yourself. You weren't in any condition to save him," I say.

"But you saved me from Skumm too."

"Yeah."

I paused for a long time. I had to make sure I carefully worded this so that she wouldn't be too hurt by it.

"Linka…when I went to New York, I was hoping to see Trish…not just to catch up on what's been going on but to…see if there was anything still there between us."

"And?" she asks, looking down at her sheets and picking at something that wasn't there.

"At first, I wasn't sure. I thought the feelings were coming back. But maybe it was just the need I have to be the macho man, and save the girl. But Trish is hardly a damsel in distress. She's tough, and smart, and can take care of herself…kinda like you…which is why I was surprised to see her not being strong enough to take care of herself with Skumm. Once she realized that Skumm was using her, she wised up, but it was almost too late. She nearly drowned when she fell from Skumm's helicopter. I dove in and pulled her out. After I saved her, we kissed."

"So you came here at…1:30 in the morning…to tell me that you have moved on. Well, I appreciate your honesty and I am happy for you," she lies. "It is late and I am tired. I am sure you are also tired from your trip," she says, looking down at her hands which are folded in her lap.

"That's not why I came here. I came here to tell you that I felt nothing."

She looks up at me with just a trace of a smile.

"Actually, that's not completely true. I felt alot of things. Sad, lonely, but mostly, I felt guilty. Guilty for using Trish to get over you. Guilty for thinking of you while kissing her and wishing it was you. Guilty for kissing someone that wasn't you...Then I realized something, and that's what I came here to tell you. I'll never be able to replace you and I don't want to. And I don't wanna change the way things are between us. This "on again, off again" thing, as frustrating as it is, and as crazy as this sounds…it works for us! It's the way I've always been. Trish and I were always like that and seeing her again made me realize that. I need to be jealous. When I see another guy giving you attention, or you giving attention to another guy, it just confirms how I feel about you. I wouldn't get jealous if I didn't really care. And I go out of my way to make you jealous because I need to see your reaction. I need to know that you hate the idea of me being with another girl. It reaffirms to me that you really do care since you don't show it openly."

"Of course I care."

"So here's the conclusion I've come to. We are fine the way things are. I like getting jealous and I like seeing you get jealous. So when guys flirt with you, and you respond. I'm gonna get mad, but I'm gonna try to keep in mind that they'll never have what we have. And as long as it's just a little flirting, then that's fine. And I'm gonna keep flirting. But you've gotta keep in mind that it's just my nature and it doesn't mean anything unless I'm flirting with you."

"Wheeler, either it is too late and I am too tired to comprehend what you are saying, or my English is failing me."

"It's confusing, I know. Basically, things need to stay the same. I can't change you and you can't change me. You aren't comfortable with showing your feelings in public, but I'm not comfortable hiding them. I'm going to be a flirt. I'm going to say things you don't like. I'm going to draw attention to that chemistry that we have and you can deny it in front of the others all you want, but they see it too. They wouldn't be surprised if we got together…I think they'd be more surprised if we didn't."

"How does this sound…when you say stuff and I respond with a negative remark, what I really mean is the opposite of what I say!" she proposes jokingly.

"So when you say 'that is a future that is NOT possible,' what you really mean is 'that's a very good possibility.'"

"Da."

"Or when you say 'When hell freezes over,' what you really mean is 'maybe later.'"

"Uh...I have never said that."

"Yeah, but you meant it a few times."

"Ok, whatever. So do we have an agreement?" she asks.

"Agreed."

She reaches out and pulls me into a hug. I wrap my arms around her and lean my head on her shoulder. After a few minutes, I reluctantly pull away. I'm tired, she's tired, I should let her get back to sleep. I give her a kiss on the cheek and stand up.

"I should go," I say.

She takes my hand, scoots over to make more room on the bed, and asks,

"Stay?"

"I don't think that's a good idea Babe." I can't believe I'm saying that!

"Just until I fall back to sleep. Remember, you make a comfortable pillow?"

"Yeah, I remember." I reach down for my bag and grab a pair of sweatpants. "Let me change. I'll be right back."

I came out of the bathroom a few minutes later to find Linka had moved to one side of the bed, leaving the other for me. I turn off the bedside light and climb in under the covers. She moves closer and I put my arm around her so she can lay her head in the crook of my arm and shoulder.

"You comfortable?" I ask.

"Da."

"Ok. Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

I held her like that while running my hand up and down the length of her arm. I thought she was asleep. She'd asked me to stay with her until she fell asleep. But with the way she was sleeping, laying on my shoulder with her arm draped over my chest, how was I supposed to leave without waking her up? I couldn't. Not that I wanted to. I pressed my lips against the top of her head and take a deep breath, savoring the scent that is uniquely hers. I'm surprised to find that she wasn't asleep.

"So this kiss you told me about…was it good?"

I laugh quietly and answer honestly, "I've had better."

"Good."

"Who says it was you?" I tease.

"Oh," she says. Then she sits up on her elbow and looks down at me. I smile at her and am about to say something when she leans down and kisses me. When she pulls away, she gives me a questioning look.

"I was just kidding Babe, of course it was you," I confess. "But if you wanna try and persuade me again, I've got no problem with that!"

She smacks my arm playfully. This is the side that I wish she would show more often. I wish she could be this relaxed all the time, but for whatever reason, she can't. I think the others would be surprised if they saw this side of her. I'm sure they wonder why I continue to chase after her. It's because of moments like this. The others don't see it. And maybe they don't need to. As long as I see it, that's all that matters. Linka's not going to declare her love for me during a mission, or at the dinner table, or after a friendly game of volleyball. It's gonna happen during a quiet moment like this. The key is having more moments like this. No fighting, no more stupid misunderstandings. If we could spend more of our free time alone together, just talking or hanging out, everything will be fine. That's how it used to be when we first met and were first getting to know each other. I was attracted to her the moment I first saw her, but I fell in love with her during our walks on the beach and when the others had gone to bed and we stayed up watching TV or movies.

I wrap my arms around her once more, and she resumes her previous position with her head on my shoulder, her leg draped over mine, and her arm across my chest. She said she just wanted me to stay there until she fell asleep, but I have a feeling I'm still going to be here when she wakes up. I don't have a choice, if I move, it'll wake her up. I use the arm that I have around her to rub my hand soothingly up and down her back. I take her hand that is draped over my chest in my other hand and intertwine our fingers.

"Are you going to be mad if I'm still here tomorrow morning?" I ask.

"Nyet. However, I will be mad if you are not."

"Yeah, I kinda figured since you've got me all wrapped up," I tease as I kiss her temple.

"You are free to leave if you are not comfortable."

"No way! I've never been more comfortable."

"Neither have I," she admits.

"Sweet dreams Babe," I whisper.

"You too Yankee."

So after all these years of thinking that I couldn't go on much longer doing this "on again, off again" thing we were doing, I now realize that we were never truly ever "off." We're both too stubborn to "agree to disagree" so that would usually result in a huge blow up, but we never stopped caring for each other. People disagree, couples argue…it's human nature. We need to grow up and realize that a little fight, doesn't mean we can't work through it, and it definitely doesn't mean that we have to throw away everything that we've built upon over the years, only to have to start all over a few weeks later once we've forgotten what we were mad about in the first place!

Those "off" moments should have just made me appreciate the "on" moments even more. I realize that now, and I'll remember it from now on. It took me a long time to realize it, but Linka and I **ARE** in a relationship, even if it's never been officially announced. Relationships are built in steps. First, there are acquaintances; acquaintances can become friends; then there are those friends that are your **BEST** friends. Linka is my best friend, and I hope she considers me hers. Sure, I'm tight with Ma-Ti and Kwame, and she's very close to Gi, but if we had to pick just one person to hang out with for a day, I **KNOW** I'd pick her, and I'm pretty sure she'd pick me…as long as we haven't had a stupid fight recently! Sometimes, good friendships evolve into something more. I hope that's what happens with Linka and I. Lying here now with her in my arms, I know I'll never be happy unless it does.

The End

* * *

Well, hopefully next time I pop in my CP DVDs, and get to "Talkin' Trash," I won't have to fight the urge to skip it. I'll just try to think of my explanation for it, and pretend that Wheeler and Linka are living in MY WORLD and the world of all the great fanfics that have been created here.


End file.
